


Jumping the Gun

by keepbeachcityqueer



Series: Human Fusion AU [3]
Category: Steven Universe (Cartoon)
Genre: Alternate Universe - College/University, Alternate Universe - Human, F/F, Multi, Other
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-08-02
Updated: 2016-08-02
Packaged: 2018-07-28 20:48:08
Rating: Mature
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,303
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/7656121
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/keepbeachcityqueer/pseuds/keepbeachcityqueer
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>"Rain was a blushing mess by the time she went up to the counter... She had never lost her cool like this before, not even when first meeting her partners. She had managed to stay cool and collected for both Malachite and Alex, not feeling nervous at all, able to contain the outward reactions her butterflies caused her.</p><p>But this? This was a mess..."</p>
            </blockquote>





	Jumping the Gun

**Author's Note:**

> A tumblr request!

It had been a weird week, even for Rainbow. Usually she had the utmost self esteem about anything she set her mind to. For the past two years her name was at the top of the board for the score of her University’s gymnastics team. Her name was still tall enough for everyone to see at her previous high school. No one had bested her yet.

That is, until she saw her name bumped down one, underneath harsh black letters, the first few of which spelled out, “Opal.”

She didn’t know what to be more angry or jealous about; the fact that she was getting her ass kicked by a freshman, or the fact that she was no longer in the running as the top gymnast in their university. And the social aspect of it was making her suffer too; now her usual crowds and popularity were most definitely shifting to the new star.

She had voiced this concern, loudly, to her partners, one of which reassured her that yes, Opal  _ was _ taking her place for the top and she should get revenge, the other of which told her that she was taking a childish approach to it.

“I like Malachite’s answer better.” Rain pouted when both of them were taking her out for lunch at one of the campus pizza places after practice. But crunchy vegan pepperonis blended perfectly with warm soy-based cheese could only take her mind off of things for so long before she began to feel heated about it again.

“Have you ever known Malachite to handle her life well though?” Alex made a good point in their reasoning.

“Yo slim, I’m right here. I can fuckin’ hear ya.” Malachite glared at her girlfriend’s partner, half-yelling through a mouthful of pizza.

“I know you can. ” Alex sneered at the very scenic view of Malachite’s chewed up food.

Rain sighed. Her partners over the years had become good friends, but that didn’t stop them from bickering on occasion. They were so drastically different. In fact, she was sure the only thing they had in common was their love for her. It sounded endearing, but it could be tiresome. Calm, calculated, logical Alex was quick to point out Malachite’s messy, abrupt, and loud shortcomings.

“She took my place though, Alex.” Rain whined, interrupting her partners’ back-and-forth. “I was number one for such a long time, now everyone’s crazy over her and it’s like I’m nobody.”

“That’s silly, and you know it’s not true.”

“Yeah babe. You’re way prettier than her, and you do those crazy backflips way better than she can.” Malachite spun her finger around for emphasis. “Plus, your ass is way better and you know what?” Malachite got closer to her girlfriend and raised her eyebrow, a mischievous glint in her pale green eyes. “You probably fuck  _ way better  _ than her, too.”

Rain giggled. “You’re probably right.”

“That’ll only make you feel better for the time being.” Alex said, sipping absentmindedly at their soda. “What you need to do is talk to her. Approach her civilly and get to know her.”

Malachite looked boredly at her metamor and scoffed. “Can you be any more of a buzzkill?”

Alex ignored her and continued. “Meet up with her after practice tomorrow. Ask her to hang out, grab a coffee or something. Get to know her. That way, it’ll be less ambiguous, and you might like her. She seems like a very modest girl.”

“Or alternatively, you can ask her to meet you in the locker room and then put that upper-arm strength to good use and pummel the shit out of her. You know, teach her a lesson about swiping your crown.” Malachite smirked, extremely proud of her idea. “That’s quicker  _ and  _ easier.”

“It’s also a quicker and easier way to get Rain kicked off the team, genius.” Alex’s eyes were unreadable through their sunglasses, but their mouth held a scowl.

“Not if we keep her quiet til Rain graduates! You and I are both big and scary, Alex, you moreso. All we gotta do it corner her once a week and just-”

“I think I’ll take Alex up on this one, babe.” Rain smiled at her more aggressive partner. Her schemes were always over the top, but it was entertaining, and sometimes proved to be the way to go. Not in this case though. “Besides, if we become friends, maybe she’ll feel bad for one-upping me and graciously step down.”

“That’s what I’m talking about!” They both high-fived each other, and Alex shook their head silently

* * *

 

Rain waited outside of the gym after practice like Alex instructed. She’d be lying if she said she wasn’t nervous, but she was great at hiding it, and even took extra time than usual on her outfit to change back into to boost her confidence, and to possibly intimidate Opal as well. She noticed they a had a lot in common style-wise. They both loved pastel colors, soft, gentle floral patterns and light, airy clothes suitable for the spring season. Maybe Rain could talk about that?

She’d have to decide soon, because Opal was exiting the gym, freshly showered with her hair unbound from it’s usual high ponytail. Rain was actually quite taken with how pretty Opal was, especially when she tilted her head up and looked at her with big, cerulean eyes framed by long eyelashes. She could only imagine what she looked like done up, but in her natural state, she was absolutely stunning.

No wonder everyone was crazy over her.

Rain cleared her throat and straightened her back. “Hey, girl.” She said, waving and flashing a charming smile. “Good job at practice today. I don’t think I’ve formally introduced myself.”

Opal beamed. “Never thought I’d finally get to shake hands with the great Rainbow Quartz.” She grasped Rain’s hand, and Rain felt the roughness on her palms. Clearly she didn’t care about them that much; Rain made sure she moisturized her hands before and after practice and every day. She couldn’t stand calluses. But on Opal’s hands they were somewhat… comforting.

“How flattering.” Rain said, smirking. “And con _ grats _ on getting top place. I must say I miss my name being up on those boards though, above everyone else’s. I guess you’ve earned it.”

“I suppose.” Opal shrugged. “I actually keep forgetting that I’m at the top. It wasn’t really a rewarding thing for me. I just really like gymnastics.”

“Oh?”  _ Nice to know while I’ve busted my ass for years to be the best. _ “How about I buy you a coffee, learn more about what you like?”

“Sure, that sounds great, and really nice of you.” The way Opal looked so sincerely at Rain with genuine thanks made Rain’s face get a few degrees hotter. She was so simple in her demeanor, so ready to accept Rain’s offer of half-assed friendship that the latter woman felt her heart swell a bit, and her palms get slightly sweaty with shame, nervousness and… something else. Why on earth was she having this reaction? She never lost her cool like this. She’d have to fake it out, hope it went away.

Unluckily for her, it never did.

They both made their way to the coffee shop and took a spot beside the tiny fountain that was in front of it. The sun was in the beginning stages of setting for the night, and the lingering heat of the harsh 80-degree day faded to a gentle warmth that promised to keep away the impending chill for the time being. The deep watercolor oranges and pinks that washed over the sky reflected on the fountain, skating over the water and casting its glow over everything, blanketing its aura over the evening lovers. It was calm like this, gentle chatter forming background music to lull others into romance, even for Rain. She couldn’t help but pay special attention to the way the sky’s colors made Opal look radiant, casting warm highlights over her long hair and beautiful face, mixing in orange with the blue of her eyes when she looked up to ask Rain what she was getting. It took Rain off guard for certain, and she needed a couple minutes to compose herself.

“I- uh... Hm, what did you say?” She cleared her throat and tried not to look at Opal directly in the eye.

“I asked what you were getting.” Opal repeated kindly. “I’m really interested in this iced chai, I probably shouldn’t get any caffeine since I kinda wanna sleep tonight.”

“Oh, sure…” Rain reread the same sentence on the menu at least twice, finding it hard to concentrate since Opal was right in front of her, watching for a reply. “I’ll get the same thing. I-I’ll get it okay? Don’t move.” She chuckled nervously, getting up and clumsily bumping the back of her legs into the chair in her attempts to stand. “Not that you would, that would be awful, and you seem too nice to do something like that and I- I’ll be back!”

Rain was a blushing mess by the time she went up to the counter to order the drinks. She had never lost her cool like this before, not even when first meeting her partners. She had managed to stay cool and collected for both Malachite and Alex, not feeling nervous at all, able to contain the outward reactions her butterflies caused her.

But this? This was a mess. This was all so strange and new. Now she could very much understand why everyone loved Opal so much, for multiple reasons other than the fact that she was heartbreakingly beautiful, but she had no idea how anyone would have the courage to actually talk to her. She was just cool in her demeanor, didn’t talk much but when she did, released  a velvety, deep voice that jarred Rain’s insides and turned them into goo in her body.

She came back with the drinks after her small meltdown at the counter, her hand shaking slightly as she handed Opal her drink. She sat back down and sipped at her own, trying to contain her jitters and feeling too shy to say anything she typically would if she were feeling more of her usual confidence.

“So Rain, what got you into gymnastics?” Hearing that purr of a voice made Rain want to melt into a puddle. Opal was looking at her with always-kind eyes for her answer. Rain tapped on the lid of her tea, suddenly unable to remember anything to do with gymnastics in her entire life.

“Well I uh… wasn’t always into it. I was a dancer before I was anything.” She said quietly. “My mother was into ballet, and my other mother was really big on shows and things like that. My step father is a musician of sorts, so I guess you could say I was born into showing off talent. ” She smiled.

“No way, my mother was into ballet too!”  Opal grinned. “It’s cool that all your parents are talented. I really liked archery when I was younger, and I still do, now I just do gymnastics because I discovered it was fun, and to keep in shape since it’s so easy to get out of it.” She laughed, and Rain was certain she was going to implode any minute.

Rain nodded and busied herself with staring at a ladybug crawling across the surface of the table, suddenly at a loss for what to say. She couldn’t even find an immediate response when a calm voice floated to her, asking, “Are you okay? You look a little stressed out.”

“It’s just… I felt a bit… well, one of my partners would call it ‘threatened,’ by you when you first came.” Rain admitted, looking away in shame. “I thought that I could pick your brains when I asked you out, to see who you are and you’re… not what I expected. You’re… better.”

“What do you mean?”

“Well… I was the best, and now all of a sudden you got here and everyone loves you and I just felt… replaced. Like I’m not good enough. And now I see why.”

Opal raised her eyebrows, then leaned forward to put a hand on Rain’s. “Rainbow, that’s not true in the slightest. You’re extremely talented, and you don’t need a board or throngs of fans to determine that. We’re both unmeasured in our abilities. We can be great equally and differently. I used to think I could never get scores like yours. You’re amazing.”

“R-really?” For the first time that night, Rain was able to look Opal in the eye. Her sweetness was overwhelming her and she could hear her heartbeat in her ears and her throat constricting.

“Mhmm.” Opal nodded in emphasis.

Rain studied their touching hands, and the desire to intertwine their digits, lock hands and perhaps press her lips against her knuckles welled up within her.

There really must have been something in the air.

* * *

 

“So, how’d it go?” Alex pinged the group chat they all shared, making sure Malachite got in on the conversation as well. Rain was in bed, unable to sleep because of her mind’s constant reimagining of the way Opal’s palms felt on her hand, the way her gaze was so focused, how soft she was in voice and personality.

“I think… I’ve got a *huge* crush on her.” Rain texted, feeling giddy after rereading her own sentence.

“What did I tell you?” Rain could almost hear the slight smugness of the message in Alex’s voice.

“That’s cool and all babe, but let me know if she still needs roughin up. U know i got u.”

Rain grinned and plugged her phone into her charger. No need for all that anymore.  _ She _ was the one that needed a pinch or two.


End file.
